Black Mamba admires His Majesty so much that all he wants is to achieve this: how their relationship began, what they learned from each other and the memorable speech at Kobe’s funeral.
Today, January 26, marks the third anniversary of the death of one of the greatest players of all time in the NBA, kobe bryant. The announcement of a helicopter accident in Calabasas, Calif.which took the lives of nine people and two of them were kobe And your daughter teethparalyzed the world sport and saddened millions of hearts. Michael Jordan he cried inconsolably and gave one of the most emotional moments of farewell; majesty is the racing engine of black mamba.
“…as a kid growing up in Italy, my access to the NBA was limited to video, so I studied everything I could get my hands on… I studied every player. Then when I came back to the States , and I realized I wasn’t going to be 6-9, I started studying Michael exclusively… I don’t think people really understand how much of an impact he had on me as a player and as a leader. “said kobe bryant in an interview for ESPN when he retired.
Kobe skipped college and went from high school to the NBA because his goal was clear. Gregg Downer, Bryant’s coach at Philadelphia’s Lower Merionexplained that “Playing against Jordan was a decisive factor in his jump to the NBA from high school. I don’t think he has any interest in going to university; he’s more interested in comparing his skills to the best of all time”. David LasmanKobe’s teammate on that collegiate team, said: “I remember him saying ‘Michael Jordan can’t stop me. I’m not saying I can stop him; but he can’t be with me”.
“You know I can kick your ass one by one”
In that sentence, uttered by kobe in the face of majestyin the first meeting of the two, the race engine of those black mamba. This is the beginning of the transition from fear to love; from the selfish and relentless player, with the ability to challenge his idol, to the compassionate and emblematic leader of one of the best teams in the NBA.
Phil JacksonThe zen masteris coach of Chicago Bulls of Jordan where he won six rings, and Kobe Los Angeles Lakerswhere he won another 5. In his book ´eleven rings´ Jackson reported that, with reasons to appease the tension between Bryant and Shaquille O’Neilthe center accused him of playing too selfishly, create a private chat between Kobe and Jordan, his idol, who watched the game against Denver from the stands in Los Angeles. The meeting after the match was in a small room at Staples Center, after the Lakers’ win over the Nuggets by 35 points, on January 10, 2000, in which Kobe dominated. was the first thing he said black mamba a majesty this is: “You know I can kick your ass one by one.”
That was not an affront, it was the way in which the temperament of It’s Kobe allowed to express great admiration for Jordan. The explanation is, again, Phil Jackson: “I arranged the meeting of the two thinking that Jordan might change Kobe’s attitude about his lack of interest in playing with the team. Jordan is more charismatic and altruistic than Kobe. Michael likes to hang out with his teammates and security guards, play tag cards, smoke cigars and joke around with them. Kobe is different. He’s a reserved teenager, partly because he’s the youngest on the team and his social relationships haven’t matured in college. When Kobe came to the Lakers, he avoided fraternizing with his teammates, but that attitude changed as he matured.”
The obsession with kobe because he passed his admirer he forgot to socialize, that he confronted her in his first conversation, that he didn’t know how to socialize with other stars like Shaquille O’Neil and the coach himself; However, he learned from it and was able to become an inspiration for the entire NBA. But once you get to the top, he can hardly find someone willing to do what he is; with his personality, his intense appetite for competition, his obsession with winning and an unyielding training ethic for 99% of players. Little by little, he understands that others don’t have to be like him, they have to complete him and not imitate him.
In Jordan he found an older brother who had already walked that path aloneand theguided´. It’s not a teacher-student relationship, it’s a brotherhood; Jordan lends him more times than his advice. Kobe sought a relationship and conversation in which to feel comfortable, without competing; both pass that threshold where only journalistic rumors reach them: ‘who is the best, ´who has more records, points, assists, etc., ´who is more amazing´.
Michael Jordan speech at Kobe Bryant’s funeral
At the funeral, with emotional farewells from MJ to KB, the haughty teenager’s wish from Kobe’s early days came true, Her Majesty bowing at his feet: “When Kobe Bryant died, a part of me died.. And as I see in this arena (Staples Center) and around the world, a part of you also died; or else they wouldn’t be here. Those are the memories we need to live and learn from. I promise you that from now on I will live with the memory that I had a younger brother, whom I tried to help as much as I could. Please rest in peace brother.”
Source: Tycsports
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